U.S. Department of Treasury "Go Direct" ProgramIn 2007, nearly 60,000 U.S. Treasury-issued paper checks were fraudulently endorsed and more than 700,000 checks were reported lost or stolen. This totaled $56 million in loss and had a tragic impact on many people who are receiving federal benefits. To help protect our community, we ask that everyone who receives Social Security and Supplemental Security Income to consider signing up for the Treasury's "GO DIRECT" program and receive benefits via electronic deposit. To sign up, please visit: www.GoDirect.org.

Oregon's Identity Theft LawOregon Revised Statutes:

165.800 Identity theft.(1) A person commits the crime of identity theft if the person, with the intent to deceive or to defraud, obtains, possesses, transfers, creates, utters or converts to the person’s own use the personal identification of another person.

(2) Identity theft is a Class C felony.

(3) It is an affirmative defense to violating subsection (1) of this section that the person charged with the offense:

(a) Was under 21 years of age at the time of committing the offense and the person used the personal identification of another person solely for the purpose of purchasing alcohol;

(b) Was under 18 years of age at the time of committing the offense and the person used the personal identification of another person solely for the purpose of purchasing tobacco products; or

(c) Used the personal identification of another person solely for the purpose of misrepresenting the person’s age to gain access to a:

(A) Place the access to which is restricted based on age; or

(B) Benefit based on age.

(4) As used in this section:

(a) “Another person” means a real person, whether living or deceased, or an imaginary person.

(b) “Personal identification” includes, but is not limited to, any written document or electronic data that does, or purports to, provide information concerning:

(A) A person’s name, address or telephone number;

(B) A person’s driving privileges;

(C) A person’s Social Security number or tax identification number;

(D) A person’s citizenship status or alien identification number;

(E) A person’s employment status, employer or place of employment;

(F) The identification number assigned to a person by a person’s employer;

(G) The maiden name of a person or a person’s mother;

(H) The identifying number of a person’s depository account at a “financial institution” or “trust company,” as those terms are defined in ORS 706.008, or a credit card account;